“WHAT?!” Wendy exclaimed and covered her mouth. A few seconds later, her eyes started to get red, and shed tears. “I told you to stop, Maria!”
“Wendy, please, lower down your voice. I don’t want Sara to hear this,” she said, fighting her tears back. “Now, I need you to get me a lawyer—”
“Where the fuck will I get a lawyer?” she said and looked at Euclid and Fred on the couch. “So that’s why they’re with you? They are your escorts.”
Euclid glanced at them. Maria knew that Euclid can hear everything that they were talking about. She can’t do anything about it because she’s not allowed to go somewhere without them.
“They helped me to get out temporarily,” she said. “I begged Agent Euclid to help me because I need to be here before Sara wakes up.”
“Temporarily?” She glanced again at the two men. Fred was now lying on the couch, having a nap. With his rhythmic breathing, it looked like that he indeed fell asleep. “What do you mean temporarily?”
“Whatever on your mind, you’re right.”
Wendy gasped. “Really? How? Why?” She then looked at her maliciously. “Maria, don’t tell me—”
“Now, what’s on your mind is wrong.” She cupped her forehead. “Get me a lawyer, Wendy. But, you have to bail me out first.”
Maria saw Euclid stand up and walked towards them. “I hate to say this, but I can hear everything about your conversation.”
“I know,” Maria said and sighed.
“I told you, Maria. I can get you a lawyer—”
“I can get myself a lawyer—”
“We can’t, Maria,” Wendy cut off. “I can bail you out, but we don’t have enough money for a lawyer. All our savings went to Sara’s—”
“I just don’t want to be a burden with you, A-Agent Euclid…” she cut off before Wendy could say something unnecessary.
“You’re not a burden. You’re essential in our mission,” Euclid said. “The lawyer that I will give you is free of charge. The NBI will pay for it.”
Wendy clapped her hands. “Take it, Maria. Stop worrying about yourself if the solution is already in front of you. This good-looking officer wanted to help you.”
Maria looked at Euclid. “What will be in return?”
“You know what I need, Maria.” He held her hand. “I need you to tell me all the information that you have.”
She saw Wendy gasp. Her wide eyes are focused on Euclid’s hand on hers. Maria tried to pull her hands, but Euclid just held it tightly.
“You’ll be safe with me, Maria. I promised—”
“Cut that promise, Euclid,” she said and snatched her hand. She turned around to hide the emotions that are starting to show in her eyes again. Before she faced him, she took a deep breath. “Let’s make a deal, Agent Euclid…”
Euclid knotted his forehead. “Deal? What kind of deal?”
Maria looked straight into his eyes. “I will cooperate with your investigation and will give you everything that I know.” She batted an eyelash. “But, in return, whatever the drug test results, you’ll get me out of prison.”
*
“WHATEVER the drug test results, you’ll get me out of prison.”
Euclid’s brows furrowed. Maria spoke those words slowly that he almost got lost in the movements of her lips. “What do you mean?”
“Maria, did you?” Wendy asked her.
Maria looked at her friend. “They made me do it…” she said and cried. “I swear, it’s not my intention to—”
Euclid held her in the shoulders. “What kind of drug they give you? Is it oral or in a syringe?”
Maria lowered his head. “It was a small round tablet in different colors… they say that it will make me numb and euphoric for the whole night,” she said and cried again. “When I refused, they threatened me that they’ll spread my pictures without a mask.”
“Shh…” Euclid hugged her tightly. “We’ll find them and make them pay for everything that they did to you.”
Maria pushed him away. “What I wanted to just get out of the prison. I don’t want to stay there, Sara needs me—”
“Mom?”
All of them looked behind, and they saw the little girl taking small steps towards them. She was rubbing her eyes as she yawned. Maria quickly ran to the child’s side and carried her.
“Yes, sweetie?” she asked the child. “It’s still early.”
“I had a bad dream again…” The little girl’s soft voice brought a tingling feeling inside Euclid’s chest. “Don’t leave me, Mommy…”
Euclid’s chest suddenly tightened at the view in front of him. He watched Maria talk to the little girl, and he noticed that they looked alike. They have the same eyes, nose, and thin pink lips. He then looked at Wendy, who was looking at them with a chagrined expression. Euclid’s brows furrowed at the sudden thought. This child wasn’t Wendy’s little sister.
Wendy sensed that he was staring at her. She looked at him and knotted her forehead. “What?”
Euclid clenched his jaw but didn’t dare to speak. His eyes followed Maria when she brought the child again to the room.
“Will you look out at the girl while I talk to you, Maria? I have to convince her to accept my offer,” he asked Wendy.
But, instead, Wendy asked him in a whisper. “Do you like Maria?”
The lines in his forehead deepened. “What makes you say that?”
“It’s not hard to tell,” Wendy said matter-of-factly. “Your eyes and body language say it all.”
Euclid smirked. “Am I that transparent?” He scratched the corner of his brow. “Can you do me a favor?”
“You already asked me a favor to look at Sara while you talk to Maria,” she said, raising an eyebrow. “Favors aren’t free these days.”
Euclid pulled out a few bluebills in his pocket and gave it to her. “Is it enough?”
Wendy hesitated to take the money. “Aren’t those the powdered bills that you used in a mission?”
Euclid almost chuckled. “These are my personal money,” he said and placed it on the table. “I just want you to convince her to cooperate with me.”
Wendy shook her head. “Maria has her own decisions…” She glanced at the money on the table. “But, I’ll see what I can do,” she said and grabbed the bills. “Talk to her first.”
Euclid watched Wendy walk towards the room, a few moments later, Maria went out with soggy eyes again. He heaved a sigh, he doesn’t know how he will tell her to stop crying because it just made his chest hurt.
“Have you thought about it?” she asked in a stern and bland tone. “I need your question before we leave this house.”
Euclid studied her beautiful face which showed a darker expression. From her sweet and angelic voice, as she talked to her daughter, it changed to a tone that conveyed anger and hatred.
“Tell me, Sara isn’t Wendy’s sister, right?” he asked, not taking his eyes off her.
Maria’s face hardened. She looked away from him. “Does it matter now?”
“Is she your daughter?” he asked and stepped closer to her. “Who’s the father?”
“You don’t need to know—”
He grabbed her shoulders and forced her to look into his eyes. “Tell me, Maria. Who’s Sara’s father?”
Maria slowly met his gaze. Her lips trembled as she speaks. “I was raped, Euclid.”
***